Watches priced above £1,000 keep UK market in growth

The UK watch market inched up 2% year-on-year in March, latest growth figures from research house GfK reveal.

Overall volume shipments weren’t disclosed, but the data does reveal that the growth was driven entirely by watches in the £1,000+ category.

Sales of watches in this segment ballooned 13% versus the same period in 2015, with the performance of men’s and women’s models almost identical.

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In contrast, sales of sub-£100 watches declined 7% in March, while the £100-£500 category slipped 14%. The £5000-£1,000 segment suffered a fall of 8%.

Leather-strapped watches enjoyed the healthiest growth in March, up 4%, followed by metal, up 2%. Watches in the ceramic case category, meanwhile, fell 6% overall, but increased a solid 12% in terms of watches price above £1,000.